BY Jessica Helinski
Do you engage in sandbagging in sales? If so, you may be hurting your success. While it’s a common practice in the industry, experts say that sellers should avoid this strategy.
What is sandbagging in sales?
If you aren’t familiar with the term, sandbagging in sales is a strategy that involves intentionally delaying closing or reporting deals to lower expectations. Why? It then creates a misleading impression of success.
“Sandbagging is a matter of underselling a deal's potential,” Hubspot’s Jay Fuchs adds.
He notes that it typically involves:
- lowballing a prospect’s probability of closing
- underreporting revenue a deal might generate
- prolonging the period before closing a deal
Why do sellers engage in sandbagging?
There are a few reasons why one might engage in sandbagging. Typically, as Fuchs explains, sellers do this when they hope to:
- avoid the pressure from management that often comes with high-stakes deals
- end a sales period on a strong note by surpassing expectations
- head into the next sales period with momentum
Why is sandbagging not a good idea?
While it may seem like a smart move, sellers should avoid sandbagging in sales. Graham Collins explains that this tactic is a big gamble for the seller—and it doesn’t always pay off.
His biggest concern is that sellers never know if delaying a close could end up killing the deal entirely.
“Even if you feel really good about [the potential of a deal]…you can’t count it until finalizing the paperwork.”
It also can create resentment within your team. While sandbagging can benefit you individually, it can create disruption for your fellow reps.
"Sandbagging can harm a team beyond performance by eroding trust and team cohesion,” Fuchs notes.
“When some members intentionally underperform, others may feel frustrated and lose faith in the fairness of the workload.”
This damages collaboration and fosters resentment, leading to team dysfunction.
And, finally, is it professional? The consensus is unclear but sandbagging definitely involves intentional misrepresentation and miscommunication. If discovered, you likely will experience harm to your reputation and credibility.
Daniel Ku explains that “Software, like CRMs, can provide accurate forecasting and hold sales teams accountable.”
He points out that when discrepancies appear, “it can raise difficult questions for the sales rep to answer.”
What to do instead
While this tactic can be tempting, sales pros suggest alternatives to taking this route.
According to Upland Software, sellers should instead focus efforts on effective account planning for improved account understanding.
“This makes more accurate sales forecasts a possibility while cutting back on sandbagging.”
If this is a weakness for you, no worries; simply devote some time to reading up on best practices. SalesFuel shares helpful guidance for effective account management, which can help you level up your skills rather than resort to sandbagging.
And research show optimizing account management can lead to measurable success, as SalesFuel reports:
- Those who excel at this practice are 3.1 times more likely to increase revenue by 20% or more in existing accounts than others.
- Top performers are 2.5x more likely to have effective processes for building and executing strategic account plans.
SalesFuel also offers additional tips that can help sellers meet quota, as well as keep momentum going.
It pays to try other tactics
Sandbagging in sales is a practice that may seem rewarding, but the risk simply isn’t worth it. Choose smarter strategies over shortcuts to build trust, close deals with confidence and contribute to a stronger, more collaborative team. By focusing on accurate forecasting and solid account planning, you not only protect your credibility but also set yourself up for enduring and meaningful success.
Photo by Andrea Piacquadio
